Thanks to lots of innovative people on the QuiltArt list and elsewhere, I’ve constructed a new portable design wall for the studio. With all the wonderful under-eave storage we had installed during the building process, there was little wall space left for a fixed design wall. So after viewing several examples and reading several summaries online, we purchased a rolling clothes rack (Bed, Bath and Beyond), two 4′x8′ boards of insulation (Home Depot) and some 72″ wide felt (JoAnn’s). I decided to make one side white and the other side black, mostly because I could see advantages to both colors and couldn’t settle on just one.
We cut the boards to 7′ and notched the bottom edges to fit over the bottom of the rolling rack. Next we covered each board with felt. We used spray adhesive to glue the two sides together around the rack – the pieces of leftover insulation board were cut to size and positioned between the two large panels, sprayed with glue, and pressed together. We laid it down and weighted it overnight… and voila!
I’ve already used the wall to photograph a new quilt. Between the lights in the studio and the light streaming in from the windows the texture shows up very well. And I can move it around to get the desired effect. And it’s ready just in time to start a new project.
Great job on the design wall! I had an especially frustrating photography session yesterday and am determined to have a better set up next time. I think a design wall like yours will be the answer.
All best,
Lora
You will so appreciate your new design wall. Nice job, Lynn. It has made a huge impact on my design techniques. Another picture of the red, green and black beauty in the future?? Happy Sewing, Colleen